EN 
PT_BR 
Brazil has secured authorization for its first five establishments to export DDGs (dried distillers grains) and 10 units to export sorghum to China. This authorization strengthens trade relations with Brazil's main agribusiness partner and opens new opportunities for the sorghum sector and the corn ethanol industry.
This measure stems from the signing of the Phytosanitary Protocol for sorghum (November 2024) and the Protocol on Proteins and Grains Derived from the Corn Ethanol Industry (May 2025), in addition to the completion of the phytosanitary certificate models agreed upon between the authorities of the two countries.
In the case of sorghum, the Central-West region accounts for more than 60% of national production. In 2024, according to IBGE, Brazil produced more than 4 million tons, of which 178,400 tons (4%) were exported. Four units were authorized in Mato Grosso, four in Minas Gerais, one in Rondônia, and one in Bahia. China is responsible for more than 80% of global sorghum imports, which totaled more than US$2.6 billion last year.
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Regarding DDG, a co-product of corn processing for ethanol, Brazil is the world's third-largest corn producer and exported approximately 791,000 tons of the input in 2024. The new authorization covers four units in Mato Grosso and one in Mato Grosso do Sul. During the same period, China imported more than US$$ 66 million of this product.
With these authorizations, Brazil now has a regular shipping channel to the world's largest importer of grains and animal feed inputs, increasing the predictability of contracts and creating room for increased export volumes in the coming harvests.
The result is the fruit of coordinated work between the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (Mapa), the Agricultural Attaché and the Brazilian Embassy in Beijing, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MRE) and the private sector, in alignment with the technical requirements established by the Chinese authorities.
China remains the main destination for Brazilian agricultural exports: in 2024, the country imported more than US$49.6 billion worth of Brazilian agricultural products.
Beyond the economic impact, these authorizations reinforce Brazil's sustainability agenda. The export of agricultural byproducts, such as DDG, promotes the circular economy by transforming industrial waste into valuable inputs for global industry.
